2015 Sustainability Report
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2015 SUSTAINABILITY REPORT Table of Contents Introduction – Our Commitment .................................................................... 4 – Letter from the CEO – Applying Science to Make the World a Better Place ................................................................................................. 5 – Letter from the CSO – Our Sustainability Story: Moving Forward .. 6 – 2015 Sustainability Goals: A Successful Decade Long Vision..........7 • Ten Year Impact ............................................................................................... 9 • 2015 Year in Highlights ...............................................................................12 – 2025 Sustainability Goals: Redefining the Role of Business in Society ..............................................................................................................14 Who we are – Strategy & Profile ...................................................................16 – Company’s Profile ............................................................................................17 – Countries of Operation ...................................................................................18 – Economic Value .................................................................................................19 – The Culmination of this Transformational Journey ..............................19 – Drivers, Risks and Opportunities............................................................... 20 Why we do it – Global Challenges ................................................................25 – The Importance of Chemistry ..................................................................... 26 – United Nation’s (UN) Sustainable Development Goals Alignment . 29 – Materiality Process ......................................................................................... 30 What we do – Our Products and Solutions ...............................................33 – Chemistry in Everyday Life ...........................................................................34 – Markets served and products by Business ............................................35 – Responsible Chemistry ................................................................................. 38 How we do it – Our People and Operations .............................................42 – People .................................................................................................................. 43 • Employee Indicators .....................................................................................45 • Enhancing Communities and Engaging Employees for Impact ... 50 – Operations ..........................................................................................................55 • Feedstocks ......................................................................................................55 • Sustainable Supply Chain .......................................................................... 56 • Transportation Stewardship ...................................................................... 60 • Leaks, Breaks and Spills .............................................................................62 • Energy and Climate Change ..................................................................... 63 • Water ..................................................................................................................73 • Waste ................................................................................................................. 76 • Biodiversity...................................................................................................... 78 Awards and Recognition in 2015 .................................................................... 80 Additional Material: Covering the Remaining G4 Aspects ....................85 GRI G4 Index .................................................................................................... 134 2 | The Dow Chemical Company 2015 Sustainability Report For the 13th year, The Dow Chemical Company report follows the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI). This document follows the GRI G4 framework, making information available on a range of Environmental, Social, and Economic topics. This document also serves as Dow’s UN Global Compact Communication on Progress for 2015. Other Company reporting that may be of interest to readers is available on www.dow.com as follows: • 2015 Dow Annual Report under Investors, Financial Information • Code of Business Conduct under Investors, Corporate Governance • Dow’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2015 (Dow 2015 10-K) under Investors, Financial Information, SEC Filings • 2016 Proxy Statement under Investors, Financial Information • Dow’s Global Citizenship website • Sustainability Updates found under the Company, Sustainability, Reporting Center Dow attains an externally verified comprehensive application level Dow is fully committed to transparency and accountability in achieving its Sustainability Goals. Transparent, in depth reporting assures that the public, as well as the entire Dow enterprise, is aware of the Company’s goals and priorities. This is one of the reasons this report has been prepared in accordance with the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) G4 Sustainability Reporting Guidelines. Dow attains externally verified reporting ‘in accordance’ with comprehensive option using the GRI G4 Guidelines which means that this report covers all the General Standard Disclosures of the G4 Sustainability Reporting Guidelines and all the Sustainability Aspects we have identified as material to the Company. We value your interest in our report and welcome questions, comments and suggestions. You can contact Erica Ocampo regarding the report or its content: [email protected] Ocampo 1- 989-638-2138 Dow Sustainability Reporting GRI G4-31 dow.com/sustainability 3 • Letter from the CEO – Applying Science to Make the World a Better Place • Letter from the CSO – Our Sustainability Story: Moving Forward • 2015 Sustainability Goals: A Successful Introduction Decade Long Vision Our Commitment – Ten Year Impact – 2015 Year in Highlights • 2025 Sustainability Goals: Redefining the Role of Business in Society 4 | The Dow Chemical Company 2015 Sustainability Report Applying Science to Make the World a Better Place Sustainability is an integral part of who we are as a Company and how we do business. It’s not just the products we create; it’s the problems we help solve. We are at the forefront of innovation, technology and science, which puts us in a unique position to apply our science to help solve the problems facing the planet today, including energy, climate change, water, food, housing and health — all through the power of innovation. Dow is now more than two decades into our sustainability journey, and we continue to raise the bar not just for ourselves, but also for our industry and the global business community. We have reduced the “footprint” of our operations; we have focused on the “handprint” of our products — that is, their impact on global sustainability; and we have courageously collaborated with others, from our work on natural capital with The Nature Conservancy to the 45,000 homes we have built with Habitat for Humanity. Last year, we successfully closed out our 2015 Sustainability Goals and renewed our commitment to sustainability with the launch of our 2025 Sustainability Goals — our third set of 10-year goals. In this report, you will discover our progress so far within our own operations and through our innovative solutions, and Dow’s renewed commitment to the 10 principles of the United Nations Global Compact. You will also see how we will redefine the role of business in society by using science and technology to drive sustainability excellence and lead a “blueprint” for a sustainable planet and society. Even with two historic transactions underway, as we welcome Dow Corning fully to the Dow family, and merge with DuPont, both of which will revolutionize our industry, we will remain solidly focused on applying the sciences to make the world a better place. We will deliver against our 2025 Sustainability Goals and continue to grow value through innovation. We will set an even higher bar for social and environmental progress by pursuing game-changing collaborations and engaging in significant dialogues across the public and private sectors. As leaders in chemistry and innovation, we are privileged to have the opportunity to influence the future of the planet. Advancing the well-being of humanity is not just our vision for sustainability; it is our chosen path for success. We look forward to a world in 2025 where Dow has proven to be a force for positive change. Andrew N. Liveris Chairman and Chief Executive Officer The Dow Chemical Company GRI G4-1 5 Our Sustainability Story: Moving Forward From footprint, to handprint, to blueprint we keep moving forward in our sustainability evolution as we start on a new exciting chapter in our story. In 1995 we released our first set of 10 year goals focused on the reduction of our ‘Footprint’, our 2005 Sustainability Goals. These goals created a culture of safety and operational efficiency that continues today. In 2006, we set the bar even higher with the introduction of a more ambitious, next-generation set of goals which focused on our ‘Handprint’, our 2015 Sustainability Goals. These goals focused on expanding our efforts into products and solutions that helped our customers and